Metabolomics reveals molecular signatures for psoriasis biomarkers and drug targets discovery

Psoriasis is a chronic skin disease that affects multiple systems and can be influenced by immunological, environmental, and genetic factors. The discovery of plasma biomarkers of psoriasis and the regulation of metabolic pathways helps us understand psoriasis and may assist clinicians in the diagnosis and treatment of psoriasis. Here, we used untargeted metabolomics based on high-resolution liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to study the changes of metabolites and metabolic pathways in plasma samples of psoriasis. A total of 301 differential metabolites were detected, of which 10 metabolites were possible potential biomarkers, including vitamins, amino acids and lipids. At the same time, KEGG pathway enrichment analysis was performed on all the detected differential metabolites, and it was found that protein digestion and absorption, amino acid metabolism and lipid metabolism may jointly participate in the regulation of pathogenesis of psoriasis. In addition, three proteins ESR1, OPRM1 and HSD11B1 were identified as possible potential topical therapeutic targets for psoriasis by metabolite-protein interaction network analysis. In this study, plasma metabolites were characterized in patients with psoriasis which provided a new understanding of the role of metabolites in psoriasis. It also deepened the understanding of the pathogenesis of psoriasis and proposed new ideas and methods for the auxiliary diagnosis and treatment of the disease.